CLAREMONT, N.C. — A Claremont man has pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in a 2022 shooting that resulted in one death and three injuries, including his own, our partners at The Hickory Record reported.
Aaron Lavito Linebarger, 40, entered the guilty plea in Catawba County Superior Court for the death of 68-year-old Euphagenia Williams. The incident occurred on June 14, 2022, at a home on Cheyenne Oaks Drive in Claremont.
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Linebarger claimed self-defense in a 911 call, stating, “I just shot two people that attacked me in my home.”
Linebarger was initially charged with murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury.
The attempted murder and assault charges were dropped as part of the plea agreement.
Superior Court Judge Karen Eady-Williams sentenced Linebarger to up to six years in prison, with credit for the two years and six months he spent in custody.
Linebarger will serve his sentence in the custody of the N.C. Department of Adult Correction.
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